F-Zero: Momentum
by LadyPineTree
Summary: Follow the adventures of my OC Destini as she faces the trials and tribulations of joining the F-Zero Grand Prix. Will she prevail and rise to the top? Rated for future violence and minor language. My first F-Zero fic!
1. Chapter 1

About Destini:

Full name- Destini Crane

Age- 19

Sex- Female

Species- Human

Birthplace- Aeropolis

Date of birth- May 30, 2541

Known relatives- None

Height- 1.5 m (157 cm)

Weight- 50 kg (110 lbs)

Complexion- Olive

Hair colour- Black

Eye colour- Brown

Outfit- Purple tube top, blue leggings, black heeled boots, racing goggles worn around her neck, hair in a braid

Traits- Street smart, has fast reflexes, good at making quick descisions

Flaws- Not a very eloquent speaker, cold/aloof, often selfish

Some background info- Aspires to be an F-Zero racer for the competition and thrills, often gets into mischief as means to an end, independent and takes orders from nobody but herself

Lap 1- The Beginning

It was a cool evening in the buzzing metropolis that called itself Mute City. The city's neon lights glowed in the orange sky as the sun was beginning to set. Vehicles made their way down the roads and life forms from all reaches of the galaxy crowded the sidewalks. Among these life forms was a young woman by the name of Destini Crane. She walked quickly, clutching the strings of her drawstring backpack in her hands and staring straight ahead; she was a woman with a mission. She was making her way to a small bar that many popular F-Zero racers would go to in their free time to drink, gamble, and shoot the breeze. She wasn't a racer yet, but Destini had gotten her pilot's license a few weeks ago after passing the final exam. All she needed was an F-Zero machine of her own. She had been saving money that she had earned through various methods over several years, whether it was working odd jobs or even theivery, and after a period of about 5 years she had attained a total of 84 million credits, only 16 million short of the 100 million she would need to fund the construction of her very own machine. One method that Destini had some success in was gambling, an easy but very risky way to make large amounts of money. She caught wind that there would be a Bet Race that night, and betting on the F-Zero with its own racers could potentially have a very large payout. Possibly even enough to get the last 16 million she needed...

Destini turned a corner and saw a large black building bordered with neon lights, and an even brighter neon sign that said "Bet Race Dollars" with the famous Blue Falcon boosting above the bright words. Just the place she was looking for. The doors slid open as the young woman stepped inside, the sound of dozens of conversations hitting her ears all at once. It was a bright and lively place with a polished red floor and purple lights on the walls and tables set up all over. Several F-Zero racers, some well known and some not, were enjoying a drink, having a conversation, or both. A few looked over to see who the new arrival was, but quickly went back to their drinks or conversations. Destini recognized a few of the racers, knowing their faces and names from following the F-Zero for many years. "Ironman Silver" Neelson, Jack Levin, Samurai Goroh, Gomar and Shioh, just to name a few. She sat at the far end of the bar in the corner, noticing that the counter was polished brightly like the floor, so much so that it reflected like a mirror. Destini turned her attention to a television screen mounted up on the wall. What was displayed on screen confirmed her earlier suspicions of a Bet Race being held that evening. The leaderboard displayed nine competitors- Little Wyvern, White Cat, King Meteor, Wild Goose, Groovy Taxi, Crazy Bear, Wild Boar, Super Piranha, and Rainbow Phoenix.

 _Rainbow Phoenix has a good track record,_ Destini thought as she propped her head up with her hand, elbow against the countertop. _There's also the White Cat..._

Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt something metal touching her shoulder. Destini turned around and was greeted by Dr. Clash, the large, spiky haired man that both ran this joint and piloted the Crazy Bear. One of his robotic hands had tapped on Destini's shoulder to get her attention. "Can I get you anything, miss?" He asked with a friendly smile. "I have my license, I just need a machine," came the young woman's simple answer. She reached into her pocket and presented the card. Dr. Clash took a quick glance at it, then laughed. "Miss Crane, I see my reputation as an engineer precedes me!" the portly man chuckled. "It's been a while since we've had a newcomer in the Grand Prix!"

Destini nodded. "I almost have all the money. I'm here for the Bet Race." Dr. Clash chuckled again. "By any chance, are you placing your bets on my Crazy Bear?" Destini tilted her head and shrugged. "I might. I might not." She said with a small smile. "I can't wait for the day that people are betting on me." Dr. Clash grinned and leaned against the countertop. "It's a wild and exciting life not for the faint of heart," he crowed.

 _"The Bet Race will begin in ten minutes. Competitors, please make your way to the course."_ A voice buzzed from the television up on the wall. "Speaking of wild and exciting," Dr. Clash exclaimed, rubbing his hands together excitedly, "I'd best be preparing my Crazy Bear! We'll talk another time, all right?" Destini nodded. "All right." She watched the grey haired man hustle out the front doors, not too far behind James McCloud and Super Arrow. Now alone, Destini sighed through her nose and looked down at her reflection on the countertop. Who would she place bets with? Preferably someone that would bet a lot of money, of course. Destini looked up and scanned the room. Nobody that would give a good bet, just other lowlifes that wouldn't have much to offer. Wait! A glint caught her eye and she looked back in that direction. A tall man that was even more portly than Dr. Clash was seated at a small table across the room with his back to her. It took a moment, but Destini recognized the white suit with thin black stripes, gold chain on the man's shoulders, and spiked white hair atop his partly bald head. She had seen the infamous Don Genie on television before, whether he was in the news for some nefarious deed or piloting his Fat Shark in the Grand Prix. Sure, he was a shady man, but a billionaire like him would offer a handsome bet that would potentially earn Destini more money than she would ever need in her lifetime. The young woman stood up and strode across the room to the small table.

"Hey," Destini queried as she sidled up to the ornately dressed man. "Aren't you Don Genie?"


	2. Chapter 2

Lap 2- Bet Race Business

"Well, what do we have here?" Don smirked as he leaned back slightly, removing the cigar from his mouth and blowing smoke out of his nostrils like a dragon. "Come to keep me company, sweetheart?" He eyed Destini with interest, and she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "I'm here to talk money," Destini stated, seating herself across from the man. Don's smirk grew as he reached across the table and firmly grabbed hold of the young woman's shoulder. "Name your price and I'll triple it for a pretty face like yours," the man chuckled as he ran his thumb along her collar bone. Destini wriggled out of Don's grasp and swatted his hand away, glaring at him. "I meant the Bet Race," she snarled. Don let out a deep, throaty laugh. "What do you common folk know about gambling?" He scoffed as he placed the cigar back into his mouth and breathed in deeply. Destini scowled at him and slung her drawstring backpack off of her shoulders and onto the table. She took a quick glance back up at the television screen, which still showed the leaderboard. White Cat had the best odds at 3:1, but the payout wouldn't be too good. Wild Goose was slightly better, with 5:1 odds. The machine with the worst odds was King Meteor, at 150:1. Destini was going to have to go somewhere in the middle...

"50 million on Rainbow Phoenix," The young woman stated as she opened her backpack and fished out the appropriate amount of credits. The odds for Rainbow Phoenix were 10:1; a slight risk with an amazing reward. Don's one visible eye widened slightly for a moment, presumably from surprise, before he smirked once more. "Look sweetheart," Don lowered his voice slightly. "I could give you ten times that if you would-"

Destini cut him off. "Forget it, old man. I'm only here for the Bet Race. What's your bet?"

Don returned the young woman's scowl and placed one of his massive hands onto the table, growling something under his breath that Destini was unable to pick up. Some movement in the shadows caught her eye. There was a young woman around her age who seemed to blend into the darkness with her mostly black ensemble, save for silver armor on her chest and shoulders and a red visor obscuring her eyes. She was tall with red hair that matched her visor and everything about her gave off a serious aura. How Destini didn't notice her earlier she didn't know, but paid this woman no attention as she waited for Don's answer.

"150 million on the Wild Boar."

Destini nearly fell out of her seat. With the Wild Boar's 11:1 odds, she would be set for life if she won the bet. All that had to happen was for Phoenix to win the race, or at the very least place higher than Michael Chain. The odds were very close, so it was no doubt that this would be a very tense Bet Race. Don smirked as he held out his hand. "Do we have a deal?" Destini didn't hesitate for a second to shake on the deal, her small hand almost disappearing in the iron grip of the billionaire's massive hand. "We do," the young woman stated decisively. Don turned to face the television screen, and the Bet Race was going to begin in about a minute. Destini chewed her lip nervously. It was all or nothing. But then a dreadful thought crossed her mind.

 _What if I lose the bet?_

Her eyes widened slightly. If she lost, she owed Don 550 million credits. There's no way she would be able to get her hands on that much money. Well, it would be possible, but she'd be Don's age by the time that would happen. And what would he do to her if he found out she wouldn't be able to pay him? She knew about Don's criminal history. He probably wouldn't hesitate to hurt or even kill a person who couldn't pay a debt. Should she go to the Federation? No, they'd probably be looking for her as well, what with being a thief. Destini felt nothing but dread in her stomach. But of course, there was always the alternative that if Rainbow Phoenix won, Don would be giving her a cool 1.8 billion credits! She'd never have to worry about money again for the rest of her life. Hell, she could have a dozen F-Zero machines constructed! Those thought's put Destini's worried mind at ease, at least for now.

"Ankoku!"

Don's rough voice snapped Destini out of her thoughts. She stared blankly for a moment until she noticed Don had turned his attention to the red haired woman and was smirking at her. Perhaps that's her name?

"Be a dear and go get me a drink."

The woman whom Destini believed to be named Ankoku stepped out of the shadows, revealing her pale complexion that was typical of redheads. "Yes sir," came her flat answer before she walked in the direction of the bar. After a moment of hesitation Destini asked, "Who's she?"

"She just works for me, sweetheart."

Destini pressed her lips together and leaned back in her seat. Not much of an answer, but that wasn't her main concern. The nine competitors were in their starting positions and the Bet Race was about to begin. The three screens appeared above the machines, and the countdown began.

 _3..._

 _2..._

 _1..._

 _GO!_

The Bet Race had begun, and Little Wyvern took the lead. Rainbow Phoenix started off in 4th, and Wild Boar in 5th. _Come on Phoenix, live up to your reputation..._ Destini thought as she watched the red machine's wings fold and unfold every time it hit a boost. The course used for the Bet Race was known simply as Jumps Of Doom. Its main hazards are its frequent 90 degree turns and the many jump plates that would send racers soaring into the air, hence the name. Some machines were simply better than others at handling the corners and jumps than others, and Destini prayed that Rainbow Phoenix would be able to outperform Wild Boar in those aspects. Just watching the nine racers battle for first place was exhilarating. Destini felt another twinge of nervousness in her stomach as she remembered that this race could make or break her potential racing career.

Rainbow Phoenix gave the Crazy Bear a hard side attack, but thankfully the yellow machine's strong body was able to take the hit. Unfortunately the same couldn't be said for its grip as the Bear lost control, ramming into several walls and leaving Dr. Clash in last place as the Rainbow pulled into second. Though he appeared passive, Don tightened his grip on the drink that had been brought to him. Wild Boar was still in 5th place, but it was obvious that Michael Chain was attempting to pull ahead. He seemed to be in a tussle with the Groovy Taxi as they both fought for 4th place, but the Boar proved to be the stronger of two as it pushed the Taxi aside, leaving PJ stuck in the dirt. All that stood between the Rainbow and the Boar was White Cat, and Super Piranha had pulled ahead of everyone else and lead the pack.

Lap 2 began, and the racers were now allowed to use their boost power. But racers had to be careful- excessive use of boost could cause a machine's engine to overheat, which would be severely detrimental to its performance. Super Piranha boosted a few times in an effort to stay ahead of the pack, but Rainbow Phoenix was able to stay on the blue and red machine's tail fairly easily, taking a few of the course's namesake jumps in an attempt to steal the lead. After a few tries Phoenix was successful as he practically landed on top of the Piranha, gaining speed from the impact before firing up a boost to cement his position in first place. Now it was Destini's turn to smirk, although Don was paying her no attention. She could vaguely hear him cursing Phoenix as well as Michael Chain under his breath, and Ankoku stood by his side, silent and attentive. The red haired woman glanced at Destini for a moment before turning her attention back to the screen.

"Yeah! The final lap!" Mr. Zero, enthusiastic as always, cheered as the nine racers crossed the finish for the second last time. Destini clenched her teeth slightly and said a silent prayer to whoever was listening that the Rainbow Phoenix would be able to hold its lead in spite of having both the Super Piranha and White Cat on its tail. _You can't fail now, Phoenix..._ Destini thought. Though the fact that Wild Boar was rapidly approaching left worry gnawing at her mind. The only thing that seemed to be slowing the orange machine down was the frequent sharp turns. Destini was starting to wish she had someone who could fetch her a drink on command. Alcohol would probably be able to calm her nerves. But her worries were about to get much worse.

The racers were on the final stretch of the course. Rainbow Phoenix looked like it would place either first or second, until the White Cat hit both the Rainbow and Piranha with a well timed spin attack. Rainbow Phoenix was slammed against a wall, slowing it down much more than the Cat and Piranha had been slowed. Destini felt her heart sink as the Wild Boar seized the opportunity and boosted its way to victory, leaving Phoenix to finish in 5th place.

 _How could this happen?_

She was brought back to reality by the sound of Don's triumphant laughter. "Now _that_ was a comeback if I've ever seen one!" The billionaire snickered as he turned around to face Destini once again. "Ready to pay up, sweetheart?"

The young woman stayed silent. The only sound was the dozens of other conversations going on around the trio. "Well?" Don asked, tilting his head slightly as his patience was beginning to wear thin.

Destini looked down, a pit of dread in her stomach. "I... I don't... have it," she said quietly.

"What? Speak up! I can't hear a thing you're saying, sweetheart!" Don demanded, impatience bleeding into his voice. But Destini couldn't bring herself to say it again. It was rare for her to feel full blown fear; she loved feeling the rush of doing something that many would consider frightening. But now, faced with someone who was infinitely more powerful than her, literally and figuratively, she couldn't stop herself from shaking in her boots. What would happen to her? Destini felt as if her life could very well be in danger as a result of all this.

Ankoku spoke up, saying the words that Destini could not. "She doesn't have the money to pay you, sir."

"You _what?_ How much do you have in here?" Don demanded as he grabbed Destini's bag and rummaged through it. "Only 84 million?" Don growled, glaring at the young woman with his one visible eye. "And people wonder why I think common folk shouldn't gamble!" He handed the bag to Ankoku, who took it without a question. "This is mine now. Take it!" he instructed. Destini sprung to life, lunging at the red haired woman in an attempt to get her bag back. "Give me that!" she demanded. Ankoku slammed her forearm into Destini's chest, causing her to lose her balance and trip backwards over the chair she was sitting in. The chair crashed loudly on the polished floor, Destini quickly following suit. The whole bar went so quiet one could hear a pin drop. Ankoku stepped back to allow Don to stand over Destini. He held his gold cane inches from her face to prevent her from getting up.

"You owe me!" he spat before turning to leave, his attendant following close behind.

(A/N: I want to give a huge shoutout to Captaina Zelda for letting me add in her OC, this mysterious woman known as Ankoku! I'd give her a cookie for that if I could)


	3. Chapter 3

Lap 3- Enter Vegas Palace

Destini remained on the ground for a few moments until the silence dissipated, the pilots returning to their conversations and drinks as if nothing had happened. She growled under her breath, picked herself up off of the polished floor and headed to the front doors, pushing her way past the pilots that were returning from the Bet Race. She made a point to shove Phoenix a little harder than she pushed aside the other racers she passed by. Phoenix grabbed his side where he was elbowed as he walked into the bar, glaring at Destini as she rushed past him. "What the hell is with her?" he asked nobody in particular as he glared back at the young woman.

Destini had a thousand mile stare on the cab ride from Mute City back to her home city of Aeropolis. Everything had happened so fast it felt like a blur. Now what? She owed a debt to one of the most notorious crime bosses in the galaxy. It took her five years to scrounge together 84 million, so who knows how long it would take for her to get the remaining 466 million credits she owed to Don. Destini couldn't help but shudder slightly as she remembered Don's cold hand grabbing hold of her shoulder and how he would constantly call her "sweetheart." How in the world was she going to find a way to pay him back? What about the F-Zero machine that she so badly wanted? Her future career as an F-Zero racer? What if Don sent his cronies after her? So many questions with such little time to answer them...

"This is as far as I can take you, kiddo." The elderly cab driver stopped the car, and Destini was brought out of her thoughts. "Thanks," came her simple answer as she stepped out of the car and slammed the door behind her. Aeropolis was a beautiful city during the day, but at night it was dazzling. Light from the city's countless skyscrapers kept the streets brightly illuminated, while transports and vehicles buzzed though the streets as busily as the would during the day, controlled by the powerful supercomputer Mother Q. Destini only had to walk a few blocks to her small flat in the lower areas of the computer powered city. It wasn't the most impressive place to live, being not much larger than a living room and the only other room being a bathroom, but it felt like home to Destini. Her only furniture was a small but comfortable futon and a small dresser that she kept her few possessions and articles of clothing in. On top of the dresser was some plastic toys of a few F-Zero machines that she had collected as a child- Mighty Typhoon, Hyper Speeder, Pink Spider, and Queen Meteor. On the walls hung two tattered posters, one depicting Captain Falcon in his infamous "show me your moves!" pose and said phrase printed boldly above him, the other depicting Dr. Stewart holding his racing helmet with both his name and "03 Golden Fox" on a banner below him. Destini sat on the futon, put her face in her hands, and sighed. Like any other sentient being, she had made mistakes and had bad days. But she didn't think it would be possible for it to all fall apart so quickly. She'd gone from being well on her way to a career as an F-Zero racer to invoking the wrath of a known criminal and having hardly a credit to her name.

"Good evening, Destini." Mother Q's feminine, robotic voice echoed through the mostly empty flat. One of the supercomputer's many functions was communicating with Aeropolis' residents through an artificial voice that could be heard no matter what building or room one was in. Destini found some comfort knowing that she could unburden herself to Mother Q and the supercomputer would simply stash whatever she was told into her junk code. "Hello, Mother Q." The young woman answered.

"How was your evening?"

Destini paused for a moment. "It was... stressful."

"How so?" Mother Q inquired.

Destini sighed. "I'd rather we not talk about it. I'm just going to go to bed."

"All right then. Good night, Destini."

"Good night, Mother Q."

Destini stood up and walked over to her dresser to get her nightclothes. She grabbed her green tank top, but felt something underneath her white short shorts. She moved the garment to the side of the drawer and found her one and only weapon beneath it- a revolver that she had stolen from a small weapons shop in the slums of Red Canyon several years in the past. She wasn't the best shot, but it proved useful in some of her heists in that desolate canyon. She picked up the small, hand held weapon and observed it for a few moments before popping it open. Locked and loaded. Destini put her tank top back in the drawer and closed it. A plan was forming in her mind, one that might just work if she was lucky. A plan that would get her money back _and_ get the 16 million credits she didn't have to begin with.

"Mother Q, are you still there?" Destini asked as she opened the bottom drawer and retrieved a holster that she strapped to her right thigh.

"Of course I am," the supercomputer answered. "What is the matter?"

"Do you know anything about Don Genie?"

"Of course I do," Mother Q replied without hesitation. "Anybody who has ever been within my city is in my database. What do you wish to know about him?"

"Where does he keep his credits stashed away?"

There was a pause from Mother Q. "I do not know for sure, but one of his casinos is the most likely place. Would you like coordinates?"

"Yes, please." Destini grabbed a pen from her dresser and wrote down the coordinates on the palm of her left hand. "I'll be back in a few hours. Make sure nobody breaks in!" She instructed the supercomputer as she rushed out the door and back out onto the street. The young woman searched for a vehicle that was driven by a sentient being as opposed to automatically driven. Such a thing was hard to come by in Aeropolis, so much so that Destini was aimlessly wandering the street for at least half an hour until she saw an elderly woman cruising down a back road. "Excuse me!" Destini called as she ran after the thankfully slow moving car.

"Can I help you, dear?" The old woman asked. Destini nodded and stepped into the car. "You can." She smiled sweetly before she drew her gun and pointed it at the woman's head. "Move it!" Destini demanded coldly, her expression immediately changing from false sweetness to a scowl. "Get out!" The old woman didn't have to be told twice. She got out of the car as quickly as she possibly could, and Destini went tearing down the street. When she was confident that the old lady was a good distance away, she pulled over and entered the coordinates into the navigation system. The coordinates lead right into the heart of Mute City's largest entertainment district, the loud and boisterous Vegas Palace. It was a place that was more active at night during the day, where rich people from every reach of the galaxy would have casinos built to both earn even more money and draw in the masses. The fact that it was also an F-Zero venue only added to Vegas Palace's already immense popularity.

Destini put the pedal to the metal, weaving in and out of the computer controlled vehicles. The few manually driven vehicles honked angrily at her, but she payed them no attention. Once again, Destini was a woman with a mission. It took some time to get to Mute City, and Destini followed the directions given to her by the navigation system to find her way into Vegas Palace. As expected, the district was as bustling and busy as Mute City would be during daylight hours. Destini continued to weave in and out between the many vehicles on the road in her rush to reach her destination. The casino she pulled up to was massive, at least on the outside. The building was so brightly lit one would think it was still daylight. Destini slowed the car down and pulled into an alleyway next to the casino. She'd have to find a way to bypass any security. But what security would there be? Possibly something that would be impossible for the young woman to break through, such as a fingerprint or retinal scan. And even if she did break through, how would she get out without being noticed?

Destini stepped out of the car and walked around the side of the building and looked for a way she could possibly get in. No windows that she could open up or break, but then again, who would stash away large amounts of credits in a place with windows? But there had to be something...

 _That's it!_

An opening to the building's ventilation system, covered by a metal grate, lay close to the paved road. Destini knelt down and began prying at the rusted screws with her fingernails, hoping that they would be weak enough to either unscrew or break off completely. The screws slipped out slightly, leaving a gap between the opening and the grate. Destini removed one of her boots and stuck the heel into the gap, using it as leverage to pry the grate off. She pushed down as hard as she could, and there was audible creaking as the old and rusty screws began to slide out. After several minutes of pushing, the grate popped out and clattered to the ground. Destini tossed the metal object to the side, put her boot back on, and crawled inside the opening. She felt a chill as cold air blew through the metal tunnel she crawled into, presumably from the building's air conditioning. Destini was able to shift her body and slide along slowly through the ventilation tunnel. Eventually, she saw light coming from another metal grate, this time on the floor of the tunnel. She slowly crawled over to it and peered down. The tunnel she was currently in ran right above the casino's ceiling. Destini could see people of all species playing poker on a large table below her, and could hear countless conversations and sounds coming from elsewhere in the building. Sounds of slot machines, roulette wheels, and dice being rolled, amongst many other things.

 _Probably shouldn't drop down here,_ Destini thought as she carefully crawled over top of the grate, praying that it wouldn't fall and scare the life out of the people below. A few meters past that, and the tunnel branched off in two opposite directions. On a whim, Destini turned to the left. This portion of the tunnel seemed to be longer than the last. But at long last, she could see a dim light coming from another grate several meters ahead. The young woman crawled over to it and peered down. With such little light it was difficult to see, but the room below seemed to be empty.

 _Here?_ Destini thought. It was worth a try. She pushed down hard on the grate, causing it to flip open. She shifted forward in the tunnel so that her feet would be the first to fall, not her head. Once her lower body was through, Destini's upper body slid through the opening with little effort. She landed hard on the ground, her heels causing her to lose her balance upon impact and fall backwards on her rear end. She rubbed her lower back for a second and looked around as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. She was able to vaguely make out the shapes of what appeared to be shelves with large objects on them. Destini stood up, walked over to one of these objects and touched it. She felt and heard credits shifting around inside of it. Her eyes widened with excitement. Jackpot! She attempted to lift what seemed to be a sack full of credits. How much was inside, she didn't know. It took some effort, but she was able to lift the sack off of the shelf and on to the floor. But how was Destini going to get both herself and the bag back up into the ventilation tunnel? She looked up and could somewhat see the opening she had dropped down from, but it was at least three meters above her. The young woman sighed annoyedly. She was basically trapped. Was there another way out? None of the shelves seemed to be close enough to the opening, so she couldn't just climb back up and escape that way. As Destini was searching for another way out, a door slid open and bathed the small room in light.

In the doorway, the same red haired woman from earlier that night stood tall and spoke into a comlink attached to the collar of her shirt. "Boss, there's been a breach in vault 28B"

Destini growled, quickly recognizing Ankoku and her flat voice. She slung the sack over her shoulder with one hand and grabbed her gun with her other hand. Destini slammed into Ankoku with all her strength, knocking the older woman to the floor and allowing the younger woman an opportunity to run. Destini ran as quickly as she could with a heavy sack over her shoulder and heels on her boots. Many of the casino-goers began to panic as they noticed her gun in hand, even though it hadn't been used.

Yet.

Destini looked over her shoulder and saw that Ankoku had gotten back up on her feet and was giving chase. Destini leapt up onto the poker table she had seen earlier, scattering cards and chips all over. She cocked her gun and fired off several rounds in Ankoku's direction, not caring if she hit the red haired woman or if there was any collateral damage. She clumsily jumped off the table, knocking it down in the process. At least it would hopefully provide an obstacle that would slow down Ankoku's pursuit. Destini pushed through the panicked crowd and out the casino's front doors, screeching to a halt before running into the alleyway where her stolen car was parked. She threw the bag of credits into the car and jumped in, backing out before putting the pedal to the metal and tearing down the street, turning onto a back road the first chance she got. Destini looked over her shoulder and saw that three cars were right on her tail. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out that her pursuers were some of Don's cronies. _Damn it, can't this thing go any faster?_ she thought, pushing down harder on the gas pedal and taking frequent turns in an effort to lose her pursuers, but to no avail.

But things were about to get ugly.

Destini's eyes widened as she heard something much faster and much larger than the other three cars approaching her fast. It was only a matter of seconds before she was overtaken by a bulky, light blue F-Zero machine emblazoned with shark teeth and the number 31. She didn't have to read the name on the side of the machine to know that this was the Fat Shark, Don's rough and tough bruiser of a machine. Destini made a hard turn in a last ditch attempt to lose her pursuers, but the Fat Shark was simply too fast for a regular street car to get away from. Destini looked behind her just as Don slammed his massive machine into the small car. The young woman's vehicle spun out of control into an alleyway before slamming into a wall. Destini's shoulder slammed into the door, causing pain to radiate through her upper body. Once the car stopped, she stumbled out of the wreck and fell onto the cold, dirty pavement. She looked up at the sound of footsteps and saw three burly, gun wielding men stepped into the alleyway, followed closely by a pair of all too familiar individuals.

"You again?" Don spat as he glared at the young woman laying on the ground. Ankoku stood attentive and silent as she always did, but held an imposingly large rifle in her arms. "Did you take something of mine, sweetheart?" Destini tried to get up, but the pain in her shoulder kept her from pushing herself up into her feet. Ankoku handed Don the rifle, and he handed her his gold cane to hold on to. The billionaire hoisted his rifle onto his shoulder and kept it pointed at Destini's head. "Look sweetheart, give me back the money and I might not blow your brains out onto the pavement."

Destini was able to prop herself up slightly, the pain in her shoulder starting to dissipate. She grabbed her gun, cocked it, and held it level to Don's head, her hand shaking slightly. "Don't come closer," she growled. "Don't come closer or I'll shoot."

For a few minutes, nobody made a move or said a word. Not the men. Not Ankoku. Not Don. And not Destini. She kept her finger on the trigger, ready to shoot at the slightest move. Her finger twitched as she briefly considered pulling the trigger and killing Don, but even is she did she would still be outnumbered four to one.

The sound of police sirens abruptly pierced the silence. "Damn it! Who called the cops?" Don demanded. As if any one of them had done it. More than likely it was either someone from the casino or somebody saw the chase. "Let's go!" Ankoku ordered before she ran off, followed by the three men. Don lowered the rifle and glared at Destini. "Don't think that this is over!" he snapped at her before following his subordinates to their getaway vehicles. Destini fought the lingering pain in her shoulder and shakily got to her feet, still a little jittery after all that happened. She retrieved the bag of credits from the wreckage of her stolen car, slung it over her uninjured shoulder, and ran deeper into the alleyway as the sound of police sirens grew louder. The young woman ran faster as she heard officers speaking to each other on the scene. She ran behind at least a dozen buildings before she stopped, completely out of breath. Dropping the bag to the ground, she looked around to scout her surroundings. Not another soul nearby, but a car that had been parked nearby would have to be her ride back home. She kicked her heel through the window and broke it, then threw the bag in, climbed in, and headed out.

As she left Vegas Palace, Destini took one last look around and breathed a sigh of relief to see that nobody was following her. She let herself catch her breath on the way back to Aeropolis, letting everything that transpired be fully processed in her mind. Destini smiled. Now _this_ was the kind of thrill she liked. Robbing a casino, a car chase, _and_ a standoff with gangsters. It would be difficult for F-Zero to top that, but given the unpredictability of the sport it was hard to say for sure. And now Destini was finally going to have a machine of her own to enter the most prestigious Grand Prix the galaxy has ever known.

Once she was home, Destini made absolutely sure that no sentient being saw her get out of her second stolen car and walk into her flat with the big bag of credits. Thankfully there wasn't anyone in sight, but then again it was past 2 AM. Unlike Vegas Palace, Aeropolis was void of any sentient life in the darkness of night. Destini dropped her bag onto the hardwood floor of her flat as she stepped inside, switching on the light.

"Good evening, Destini." Mother Q greeted the young woman as she walked over to her dresser to grab her nightclothes. "Hello Mother Q," Destini greeted a little more happily than normal.

"What did you do tonight?" The supercomputer asked, trying to make casual conversation.

"Nothing you'd find interesting." Destini's answer was a lie, of course, but Mother Q had no way of telling the difference. "But make sure the door is locked tightly and nobody tries to come in, ok?"

"Of course."

As they spoke, Destini changed into what she usually wore to bed- a green tank top and white short shorts. She turned off the light and laid down on her futon. In the darkness, she could vaguely see the posters of Captain Falcon and Dr. Stewart up on the wall. Soon, it would only be a matter of time until they went from being poster boys to Destini's competition.


	4. Chapter 4

Lap 4- On The Road With Purple Tabby

The race on Mute City: Serial Gaps had reached its final lap. Tensions were high among the racers, and the excitement of the crowd was through the roof. Blue Falcon held the lead, followed by Spark Moon in second place. Destini followed close behind in third place, piloting her purple machine. As Spark Moon and Blue Falcon were slowed down by explosions from the mines at the end of the tunnel, Destini seized the opportunity to pull into first, slamming the boost and sending her purple machine soaring majestically through the air and landing on the track below. She drifted around the turns and dropped from one section of the course to another. She could vaguely hear Mr. Zero's excited commentary, but paid him no attention as she reached the final stretch and victory was in her grasp. Destini smiled as she went off the final drop and saw the finish line not too far off. Suddenly, an all too familiar light blue machine pulled up next to Destini. Fat Shark. Its massive and imposing body slammed hard into Destini's purple machine, just as it had done to the small street car that one night in Vegas Palace. The purple machine didn't fare much better, and was crushed against the course's side rails, sparks and machine parts flying through the air. The last thing Destini saw before her vision went black was Fat Shark crossing the finish line to victory.

Destini startled awake. It was only a dream. She sat up, her long and sleep disheveled black hair falling over her shoulders as she took a moment to collect her thoughts and allow her speeding heart to return to normal. It was a dream that sure felt real. But Destini was in her flat, posters on the walls and old toys on the small dresser. Not injured or dead in the wreckage of a purple F-Zero machine. She kicked her blanket off of herself and got up from the futon, walking into the bathroom and grabbing a towel hanging from the door. The young woman took a quick shower and washed her hair to freshen up for an important day. A month had passed since the heist in Vegas Palace, and now that Destini was able to pay for her machine, Dr. Clash was working hard putting together her machine from parts she had chosen for it. Last she checked, her machine was almost complete. The same machine she was piloting in her dream. A dream that left Destini both excited and rattled. She was excited to race, of course, but the thought of being targeted by Don Genie during a race worried her. Hopefully her machine would have a strong enough body to withstand attacks, though that would be difficult since Fat Shark is one of, if not the biggest bruiser on the F-Zero circuit.

Destini pushed those thoughts aside, got dressed, and closed the toilet lid so she would have a place to sit as she blow dried her hair. The poster of Captain Falcon was visible from where she was, and as she dried her hair, she read 'Show me your moves!' over and over again. Destini couldn't help but wonder if she would end up becoming one of the F-Zero greats. Names like Captain Falcon and Mighty Gazelle would go down in history, would Destini Crane end up being one of those names someday? At the very least Destini wanted to be on a poster like Falcon and Dr. Stewart.

Once her hair was dry, Destini stood in front of the mirror to braid the long portion of her hair. "Good morning, Destini." Mother Q greeted. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel good," the young woman answered. "Can you call me a cab? I'm heading to Mute City soon."

"Of course."

When she was done, Destini tied the end of her braid with a magenta hair tie and headed out, after asking Mother Q to lock up of course. The requested cab and its robot driver were waiting just up the street. Destini wasted no time hustling over to the cab and hopping in. "Hey, can you take me to-" she began but was interrupted by the robot. "Bet Race Dollars in Mute City, as instructed by Mother Q. Please buckle in and enjoy the ride. Fare will be calculated when we reach our destination." The young woman did as instructed, and the cab took off down the busy streets of Aeropolis. It wasn't very long until the skyscrapers began to disappear and were replaced with a concrete jungle of warehouses and factories that lined the highways outside of large cities like Aeropolis. Destini leaned her head to the side and lazily stared out the window, her eyes starting to close as she began to doze off out of boredom. A nap would make the hour and a half long trip to Mute City feel a lot faster anyways.

When Destini opened her eyes, she was greeted by the neon lights of Mute City that dazzled the metropolis even during the day. She rubbed her eyes as she adjusted to the sudden bright light. "Did you have a nice nap?" The young woman was startled awake by the driver's question. "It was fine. Are we almost there?" she asked curtly. "Approximately four minutes," came the robot's answer. Destini impatiently sighed and stared out the window again, watching the brightly lit buildings go by. As expected, it wasn't terribly long until the cab pulled up to the black, neon lit building that had become all too familiar to Destini. The driver held out its hand. "Your fare is 4780 credits." Destini fished the credits out of her pocket and placed them into the robot's cold, metal hands. "Thank you. Please choose Galaxy Cab again!" Destini didn't answer and simply closed the door. The cab drove off as she turned and walked into the bar. As the doors slid open, she kept her eyes and ears open for any sign of Don or Ankoku, but thankfully neither of them were there. Destini hadn't seen them since that one night a month ago, and she wasn't in a hurry to see them again. The bar was relatively quiet; only a few racers were sitting around having a drink. Roger Buster and Draq were talking and laughing with each other, and appeared to be having a good time together. Samurai Goroh and his son Dai were watching replays of the previous week's race on Sand Ocean: Surface Slide, where the father and son pair had competed alongside each other. Mighty Gazelle sat in a corner, quietly observing everyone and everything around him. The cyborg didn't seem to be lonely, but then again, his lack of any facial expression made it difficult to tell. The last racer in the bar was, of course, Dr. Clash. He stood behind the bar as he always would, polishing a glass with a white cloth as he sang an old school rock and roll song to keep himself occupied as he worked. Destini smirked slightly at the elderly man's eccentricity as she approached the counter.

"Hey," the young woman greeted as she took a seat at the bar. Dr. Clash smiled at her and set the glass down. "Good day, Miss Crane. What brings you here?" he asked, leaning against the reflective countertop. "My machine," came the young woman's simple answer. Dr. Clash couldn't help but laugh. "Always straight to the point, aren't you?" the portly man chuckled as he walked to the end of the bar to exit out to the other side. "Come with me," the engineer gestured for Destini to follow him, and she obliged. He led her through a set of locked doors at the back end of the bar that led into a hangar that housed both the Crazy Bear and countless spare machine parts. Destini felt as if the eyes on the Crazy Bear were staring at her as she walked by, following Dr. Clash to the rear corner of the hangar. The walls and floor were the same reflective metal as the countertop of the bar, making it appear as if the two were walking on a mirror.

Dr. Clash stepped to the side, revealing the same purple F-Zero machine that Destini had seen in her dreams. "Well? What do you think?" the engineer asked.

Destini's eyes widened. The machine was even more incredible than she had expected it to be. It was mostly purple, but some parts were accented with black. The cockpit was a sleek and smooth Aerial Bullet, the body was the winged and sharp nosed Fire Wolf, and its booster was the powerful Triple-Z. Between the wing and the cockpit the machine was emblazoned with the number 41; the number Destini would be registering under in the Grand Prix. "It's... wow..." The young woman was at a loss for words. Dr. Clash smiled proudly. "Its got three CT-1998-828 engines and weighs 1740 kilograms," he informed her. Destini struggled for a moment to find something to say. "It's even better than I thought it would be," she managed to say in the midst of her awe. She walked over to her new machine and placed her hand on the smooth, cold metal of her machine's wing. Dr. Clash rubbed his hands together excitedly. "I'm overjoyed that you love it!" he gushed, wriggling his upper body in happiness. "Ready to try it out?"

Without taking her hand off of her machine, Destini smirked at the engineer. "I am beyond ready."

It wasn't very long until the two arrived at Sonic Oval, a very simplistic course at the edge of Mute City. Thanks to this course's extreme simplicity it was rare for a Grand Prix to be held there, so it was mostly just used as a training ground. The statues and bright lights of Vegas Palace were visible from the course, so it was often disputed as to where this course's venue should be listed under. Dr. Clash stood in the stands, ready to watch Destini test her piloting proficiency. The young woman climbed in to her machine and felt nothing but excitement as the cockpit closed and she strapped herself in. As the machine roared to life, Destini could feel the G-Diffuser kick in and slightly lift off the ground. Dr. Clash gave her two thumbs up, and she hit the pedal, feeling a jolt in her body as the machine went from hovering in place to roaring down the track at nearly 1000 km/h. _This course might not be the best to practice on,_ Destini thought as she simply turned the steering wheel slightly to the left to hug the track's curve. There was a fair bit of resistance though, so it would be difficult to maintain a turn without drifting. _But how do I drift again? Was it brake while turning or something else...?_ Destini thought, trying to remember what she had learned in pilot's school. She tried the first option she thought of but ended up slowing down significantly. _Ok, not that..._

"Having some trouble?" Dr. Clash's voice buzzed over the com-link. "Your machine's handling isn't the best, but you did say you were willing to sacrifice control for speed."

"I've got this," Destini snapped at him. She put the pedal to the metal and hit a boost plate, feeling another brief jolt through her body. The young woman felt alive. The anticipation of actually competing in a race made her feel even more excitement. She would challenge Dr. Clash to race her, but she first had to get the hang of her machine.

"Hold the brake lightly when turning to drift." Dr. Clash's voice buzzed again. "I know. Leave me alone!" Destini growled at him annoyedly. In spite of her irritation with the elderly man, she listened to his advice. It worked, and Destini was able to make her machine drift for a few seconds. It would take some time to master that technique, but she had all day to practice.

During the two hours she practiced, Destini was able to get the hang of a few basic techniques. She could maintain a drift for a few seconds, though it wasn't very steady and she had a tendency to lose control. She could spin attack, but of course there was no way for her to know just how good she was at it. Same with side attacks, but she didn't know how accurate her attacks would be. Destini pulled her machine over and jumped out as Dr. Clash smiled at her, his robot hands clapping. "Well done!" he congratulated. "You're getting the hang of it." Destini folded her arms and smirked. "I'm surprised you stuck around this long."

"Well, you weren't the only one who wanted to see how the machine would perform!" Dr. Clash paused for a second, and then he asked, "What are you going to call it?"

Destini didn't hesitate for a second. "Purple Tabby," she said definitively. The engineer gave her a somewhat puzzled look. "You know, a tabby. A striped cat." The young woman elaborated. Dr. Clash nodded slightly. "I see. Not a bad idea for a name. Here, let's go register you and your Tabby with the F-Zero Committee." The pair returned to the hangar they were in a few hours before, and Dr. Clash powered up a computer console on the wall, a holographic projection of a screen appearing in the air above it. As the engineer typed, Destini walked over to watch him. "Hey, can I see my machine's stats?" she asked. "Sure, just hold on a moment," the portly man answered as he typed with amazing speed. After a few minutes, Dr. Clash tapped on a few things on the projected screen. "All right, here we go." He stepped aside and allowed Destini to have a look. "Purple Tabby #41" was displayed at the top of the screen, with a picture of it below. She scrolled down slightly, and the stats were displayed below the picture. Body level was listed at B. _Not bad,_ Destini thought. _Could probably take some hits if it has to._ Boost level was listed at A. _Not terribly surprising. The Tabby sure could go when I hit the booster._ Finally, Grip level was listed at E. Another stat that didn't surprise Destini. Purple Tabby had a very difficult time taking even small turns without drifting, a technique that she was going to have to master. Destini smiled. "I like it. I like it a lot." Dr. Clash returned her smile. "You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear that, Miss Crane. Now if you would politely excuse me, I have a bar to run." The portly man shut off the computer and returned to the bar. Destini stayed for a few moments, admiring her machine, before she turned to go in to the bar to get herself a drink. Dr. Clash was more than happy to give the young woman a drink on the house, in spite of her insistence that she paid. "No, no, take it!" The engineer insisted. "You earned it!"

Destini sat and relaxed for a while. At this point the bar was empty, so it was quiet aside from the television sets mounted up on the walls. She couldn't help but stare at the small table that she and Don had sat that fateful night a month ago. At this point, it felt like a lifetime ago. Destini shivered again as she remembered pulling herself out of Don's grip on her shoulder. She never liked being touched, especially not by a fat old man who was 46 years older than her. After her drink was gone, Destini returned to the hangar to drive her new F-Zero machine back home to Aeropolis. She had only just walked in when she heard fast footsteps and briefly saw a dark reflection move across the reflective metal floor. Destini quickly drew her revolver from her thigh holster and cocked the weapon, rapidly looking around. "Who's there?" she demanded, holding her gun at arms length. No answer. She searched the hangar, but it was empty. There weren't very many places for somebody to hide, just behind one of the machines. Destini even looked underneath the Crazy Bear and Purple Tabby, but there wasn't a soul around. Who on Earth was prowling around? And what were they doing? The young woman didn't holster her weapon until the cockpit of her machine was closed and the main door of the hangar opened. Purple Tabby's engines roared to life, and the newly built machine took off down the streets of Mute City. She entered the coordinates for Aeropolis into the navigation system and followed the given directions. Thankfully, F-Zero machines don't go as fast on a regular street as they do on the circuit. If they did, Destini probably would've caused several accidents on her hour and a half long road trip back to Aeropolis.

Upon returning home, Destini lazily flopped down onto her futon before searching through the messed up blanket for the television remote. She pointed it at the wall, and a small hologram of a screen appeared. One advantage to living in a computer powered city like Aeropolis was that every flat, no matter how small, had a small television set built into the wall. It was a good thing for Destini, since she wasn't willing to shell out the credits to buy a television set. Not like there was anywhere to put one, anyways. She looked through the guide to find something that she would be willing to watch while lazing around and eating her dinner. There was one movie that interested Destini, a crime-drama set in the 22nd century and apparently inspired by true events. She dropped the remote onto the futon, got up, and headed to the pantry to see what she could eat for dinner. To the young woman's dismay, there were snacks but nothing that could make a full meal. Slightly frustrated, she looked in the mini fridge. Nothing but a few bottles of blueberry marble soda. Destini sighed through her nose. _Looks like I'm eating take out tonight,_ she thought as she strapped on her thigh holster and headed out the front door. It was as silent as an evening could be in Aeropolis. Destini had only approached the Purple Tabby when she heard the clicking of three guns behind her, followed by an all too familiar voice.

"Took long enough to find you."

Destini drew her own weapon and spun around, now face to face with somebody she hadn't seen in a month.

It was Ankoku. She held her gun level to Destini's chest, as did the two men that stood on either side of her. Ankoku's red hair seemed to glow in the city lights and casted an air of ferocity to her visage.

"You again?" Destini growled. Keeping her finger a millimeter from the trigger, she backed up until her back was against her machine. "How did you find me?" She demanded.

Ankoku smirked. "You didn't see what I put on your machine?"

Destini hesitated. Did her assailant want her to turn around so she could shoot? As if she could read Destini's thoughts, Ankoku said to her, "Go ahead and turn around, I won't shoot. After all, my boss wants you alive. You're no use to him dead." Of course. Why would Don Genie want his underlings to kill Destini when he could exact his revenge on the young woman with his own hands, possibly quite literally? Keeping a close watch on her assailants, Destini skimmed her eyes over Purple Tabby's hull. Sure enough, it was almost invisible thanks to being black on black, but a small tracking device had been planted near the nose of her machine. Destini pried the small metal object off of her machine before throwing it onto the ground and crushing it beneath her heel. "What do you want?" The young woman demanded, turning her full attention back to Ankoku and her cronies. "You know exactly what," the redhead answered. "Just come with us and we won't hurt you. Then we'll see what Don wants to do with you."

"Forget it!" Destini shouted, the sound of a gunshot echoing through the evening silence as she quickly turned and shot one of the men, hitting him in the shoulder. She dove behind the Purple Tabby as Ankoku and the second man opened fire on her. Destini peeked our from behind her machine to fire off a few shots as the cockpit opened up. She jumped in and started up her machine as several bullets struck the windshield. Thankfully for Destini, the glass used for the windshields of F-Zero machines was made to be incredibly strong and difficult to shatter. After all, it wouldn't do any good for a windshield to shatter in an accident and cause further injury to the pilot. She put the pedal to the metal and tore down the street as fast as she could while also avoiding traffic as best she could, but thanks to the Tabby's wings and poor handling she inevitably caused some collateral damage. Thankfully, the damaged vehicles would serve as obstacles to slow her pursuers. Escape would be much easier this time, since Destini knew all to well that an F-Zero machine could easily outspeed any street car. The young woman took as many turns as she could, albeit with some difficulty, but she could still see her pursuers some distance behind her. Purple Tabby was rapidly approaching the end of a main road and the beginning of the highway. Destini had only one option left to lose her pursuers for good. She drove straight towards a cluster of computer controlled vehicles and launched a spin attack. It wasn't the best one, but a good number of vehicles were hit and scattered about the road haphazardly. Destini could hear the skidding of her pursuers' brakes as she floored it onto the highway. She didn't know where it would take her, but that wasn't an issue. Don Genie and his organization now knew where Destini lived and possibly knew that she used the stolen money to have her machine built. One thing was for sure. Destini wouldn't be returning to Aeropolis for quite some time.

As she took a moment to get her bearings together, Destini saw a hologram of a sign on the side of the road. It read "Port Town- 4500 kilometers"

Time for a road trip.


End file.
